Vampire Economics

Obama has enough deficit spending to bring life to the dead.

At the time of this writing, the current federal public debt stands somewhere north of $11.2 Trillion dollars, yes, with a “T”. In February of 2009, the Congress established a debt limit of $12.104 Trillion, yes, with a “T”. According to the numbers released by the White House today, the budget deficit will top $1.8 Trillion (yes, with a “T”) this fiscal year alone, and will require Congress to raise the official federal public debt limit.

Gross domestic product (GDP) includes the market value of all final goods and services in a year, and is a basic measure of economic performance of the US. GDP is currently estimated to be somewhere around $14.5 Trillion for 2009, but that number may be somewhat lower as a result of the current recession.

In the very near future, the amount of the public debt, and the service on the interest of the debt will soon equal the total GDP of the US.

Using data from the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office, the General Accounting Office and analyses from the Wall Street Journal, we can investigate the obligated expenditures and guarantees of the US government. If we add together every program that has been obligated by the Federal Government, the taxpayer liability will be about $15 Trillion, yes, with a “T”. This enormous number is equal to one out of every five dollars spent on goods and services IN THE ENTIRE WORLD.

Here’s a quick breakdown on the heavy hitters of what you, the taxpayer are on the hook for from your elected officials:

$3.5 Trillion (yes, with a “T”) of expenditures, which includes:

$168 Billion Bush stimulus

$787 Billion Obama stimulus

$366 Billion Mortgage backed securities insurance

$300 Billion Aid to mortgage borrowers

$290 Billion CITI guarantees

$173 Billion AIG guarantees

$ 29 Billion Bear Sterns bailout

$ 15 Billion GM bailout

$700 Billion in TARP guarantees (of which $600 billion distributed)

$7 Trillion (yes, with a “T”) in Federal Reserve guarantees

The following guarantees have been established, but it is not anticipated that any taxpayer losses will occur, but who can guarantee that?

$2.8 Trillion (yes, with a “T”) money market guarantees

$300 Billion Corporate financing guarantees (e.g. GMAC, Chrysler Finance)

Expenditures and guarantees total roughly $15 Trillion, yes, with a “T”. These are the commitments we made ONLY during the past 12 months. Remember, that while George W. Bush participated this profligate, irresponsible spending, all of these commitments were made after the Democrats assumed complete control of both houses of Congress in the 2006 election.

We have seen a flattening of some of the indicators associated with the current recession. The free-fall in the markets is temporarily reversed. The freefall in new unemployment claims is slowing.

Is there any doubt that the recession has slowed when you look at how much money has been thrown at this problem? With this kind of money you know there will be waste. With this kind of money you know there is spending on unnecessary programs. This is not Voodoo Economics, it is Vampire Economics. With this kind of money the dead can be resurrected. But are we going to kill our children under the weight of debt?

Contact: frank.canzolino@gmail.com